New 'Learner' duck keeper!

We have had our ducks since May bank holiday. We have 3 khaki and 2 white campbells. THey seem very happy, love their pool and food and so funny to watch. My 2 year old likes to fill his bucket with snails and slugs then present them to the girls! I am probably being impatient but no eggs yet! I was told they were 4.5 months old when we got them so i think they are around 26 weeks now. I have 2 questions - I bed them on sawdust -should I use straw instead? And I have never put any cleaner/ disinfectant in the house, should I do this regularly? thanks for any advice or guidance. jayne

Hi Jayne,
Welcome to the farmingfriends forum. There are lots of duck enthusiasts here how will be happy to advise. Ducks can start to lay from about 22 weeks.
I bed mine down on straw, they like to make nests in the straw and this could encourage yours to start to lay. You could also try adding a pot egg or two into the nesting area/ hut to encourage them.
It is a good idea to thoroughly clean out the hut and disinfect the area with a safe disinfectant for use in a poultry hut. Disinfecting the area will help to get rid of many lice or mites in the house and also help to get rid of bacteria that could lead to illness.
I have 6 khaki campbell ducks and 1 khaki drake called Sir Francis Drake!
Good luck with the eggs. It is very exciting when you get the first egg.
Kind regards
sara @ farmingfriends

Hello Jayne, I too have white campbells, and they live on straw. They are a bit erratic with their laying atm I think because it has been so hot and some of them are moulting, however i got three today as it was cooler. Are you feeding them on layers pellets?
Sarah L

No i dont disinfect, I have a spray cleaner which i squirt around every now and then as they poop up the walls! If you have food and water in there and its hot, then you can get problems with leftover wet food deposits and maggots, but if you clean up spills that wont be a problem.
I lift out poos every day and put a bit of fresh straw in to replace the mucky stuff that i remove. they get completely new bedding once every few weeks or so.
Sarah

Hi Jayne, I too have Campbells, 2 Khaki and 3 white. Mine are happy on straw too and I do the same as Sarah. I've never used disinfectant and I've had mind just over a year now. Mind you I'm sure it would be a good idea every now and then. Yours will lay all in their own good time and when they do they won't stop!! As Sarah says, it's probably a good idea to feed them layers pellets, this is what mine have.
Welcome to the fun world of ducks!!
Rachel

I am new here as well and I am absolutely loving it! The people on this forum have been very helpful and quick to answer my questions and give me direction for more information, it has been great.

I, too, have ducks that are three months old...they came to me April 19, 2010 and I love, love, love them. I had no idea that they would come to mean so much to me so quickly. A friend of mine has ducks and when I would be around them I was just so entertained and impressed with their antics...and then through a turn of events (because we were going to get chickens) we ended up with ducks and the love is just growing and growing. They never cease to amaze me! Okay, I have gone on and on enough, I guess you can tell I am very smitten with my girls! Welcome and enjoy! ~Sharon

thanks for all the help. They look really chuffed with their new comfy bedding. I built a nest and put 2 pot eggs on it. One egg mysteriously disappeared on day 1 but the other is still there! They discovered the green house today which was fun - lots of bugs in there. they are getting more confident each day and exploring further afield. I have just posted a picture of the girls on the facebook page xxxx